Sunday, July 19, 2026

Scripture: Ephesians 2:14-21

Sermon Title: No Longer Strangers

One of my sets of grandparents had three children and they each had three children. So my grandparents would take us grandkids on trips, and they would do oldest kids trips with the oldest from all the families, middle kid trips, and youngest kid trips. And it was an ingenious idea on their part because when we traveled, we were always with cousins, not siblings, so it really cut down on arguments between us kids.

One of the trips that they took us on was to New York City. I was only 6 years old at the time, my cousins that went with me would have been about 9 and 8. So I don’t remember a lot of it, but I remember some things. One of the things that we did while were there was that we went to the Statue of Liberty. I didn’t go up in the statue, but we saw outside the statue. My memory is that I touched the Statue of Liberty.

The Statue of Liberty is not just a symbol for New York, but has truly become a symbol of our country. It’s a symbol of freedom, liberty, and a fresh start in the United States of America.

Last week if you were with us, we began a series inspired by the 250th birthday of our nation called “A More Perfect Union,” inspired by the words from the Preamble to our Constitution. This week we’re continuing in that series and looking at this symbol of our country. But remember, as followers of Jesus Christ, we should be looking at everything in our lives, even our country and our citizenship through the lens of the love and grace of Jesus Christ.

The Statue of Liberty was a gift from the French. The hope was that the statue would be completed by the centennial of the United States. It would be a joint effort between our countries. The French would build the statue and we would do the pedestal it stood on as a symbol of our friendship with one another. On October 28, 1886about ten years after the Centennial, President Grover Cleveland dedicated the Statue of Liberty.

Nearby the Statue of Liberty was Ellis Island where immigrants would be processed as they entered our country. It is believed that between 1892 and 1954, 12 million immigrants were processed at Ellis Island. During the peak years of 1900-1914, between 5,000 and 10,000 people would come through every day.

And what would be the thing immigrants would see as they entered Ellis Island? The Statue of Liberty, a symbol of freedom, liberty, and new beginnings. This was the first sight that would welcome many as they began their new life in America.

On the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty is a poem titled, “The New Collosus,” written by Emma Lazarus. The poem was written as a way to fundraise money for the building of the pedestal. And the most famous words of this poem are these words:

“Give me your tired, your poor/Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free/The wretched refuse of your teeming shore/Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me/I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

Don’t you love those words? America was to be a place where the tired and poor could come to experience a better life. It was a place where huddled masses of people could come and breathe freely.

You see because of this poem and Ellis Island, the Statue of Liberty also became a symbol of immigrants coming to experience a new and better life of freedom in the USA.

Now I know in recent years, immigration has become a hot button issue in our country. And before you get riled up about this issue, I encourage you to take a deep breath, pray, and ask the Holy Spirit to guide you about this issue. We must remember, that our country was built on immigrants. Our country has often been referred to as a “melting pot.” It is also believed that 40% of Americans can trace their ancestors as people who came through Ellis Island at one point.

Last week we talked about division and polarization. When we talk about immigration, we can often become divisive and polarized. But maybe we can pray and see through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, is there a middle way? Is there a way where we can find agreement?

First, I think most of us can agree that we don’t want violent criminal offenders here in our country. But I also think, many of us parents and grandparents, we can understand people wanting to come to America to experience a better and safer life for their children and grandchildren. Most immigrants are not violent criminals, but are simply seeking a better life for their family. Most immigrants do not want to be here illegally, but is it so difficult to come here legally, that they don’t know what to do. And I also understand the argument that legal immigrants who have been waiting years to come get frustrated by illegal immigrants who skip ahead of them in line.

But as I said last week, these difficult issues we face are not easily answered with posts and memes on social media. But we need to have difficult face to face discussions with one another, seeking a bipartisan way forward to create paths to citizenship for people who truly are seeking a better life for themselves. How can we better live into this symbol of freedom in our country? How can we live out Emma Lazarus’s poem about immigrants coming and seeking a better life?

We might disagree on what is the best path forward. But I hope we can all agree that all people are made in the image of God and are loved by God. I hope we can agree that all people should be treated with love and dignity.

Our scripture passage for today is still in the book of Ephesians. Last week we looked at chapter 4 and this week we’re looking at chapter 2. Here the Apostle Paul is talking about how Jews and Gentiles are now one in Christ because Jesus is our peace. Paul writes, “For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility.” (Ephesians 2:14, NIV)

Now this might not seem extraordinary to us, but to the Jewish People, this would have been extraordinary news. Jews and Gentiles lived very separate lives. And now, Paul is saying that because of our Savior Jesus Christ, the barrier between these two groups has been destroyed. The wall of hostility has been destroyed.

Last week we talked a lot about unity. We talked about the division and polarization in our country. I would say these words of Paul that described the relationship between Jews and Gentiles could describe many relationships today. If Christ is our peace, he takes away the division between Republicans and Democrats. If Christ is our peace, he takes away the division between black and white. If Christ is our peace, he takes away the division between men and women, young and old, foreigner and citizen, you name it. In Christ there is no longer any hostility. In Christ there is no longer any division.

Then Paul tells us more about what this means for us. Ephesians 2:19-20, “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.” (NIV)

The Jews and the Gentiles were foreigners and strangers to one another. But Paul is telling them, because of Jesus Christ, this is no longer the case. In Jesus they are fellow citizens. They are all members of the same household of God.

Many of us are blessed to be citizens of the United States of America. But we have an even greater citizenship. Our citizenship is in heaven, and we are members of the household of God. Our citizenship in our country is great, but our citizenship in the Kingdom of God is even greater. And as followers of Jesus Christ, we should always be more concerned about our citizenship in the Kingdom of heaven than the citizenship of the countries and kingdoms of this world. We should be more concerned about following Jesus our King than the politicians and kings of this world.

If through the peace of Christ, Jesus could bring Jews and Gentiles together, then surely Christ can bring Republicans and Democrats together, black and white together, men and women together, young and old together, foreigner and citizen together, you name it.

Remember how I said that my grandparents always took us grandkids on trips? Well, it was the middle kid trip, not my trip to New York City that they went to New York City only 2 months after 9/11. They had already had the trip scheduled, and after 9/11 happened, they questioned if they should go or not. But they decided to go. And they were so happy they did. My grandparents even made friends with a couple that lived in New York City that they are still in contact with today. Their little boy was playing with my sister and cousins, and they all struck up a conversation with one another.

This was the New York City trip that my middle sister went on. My grandparents said it was their favorite trip to New York City because everyone in the city was so kind and welcoming to one another. People profusely thanked my family over and over for not being scared and still coming to their great city. People in the city were so kind and welcoming.

Sadly, after such a tragedy, there was peace in the air. Now I know this is not true between our country and other nations. We entered into war with Afghanistan and Iraq after 9/11. But hostility and division were no longer apparent in New York City. And I would say the same was true throughout much of our country. We were united in a way I’m not sure we had been since WW2 and probably have not been since.

In a city of millions of people, people who are probably strangers to one another, they were no longer strangers. That’s how it is in the Kingdom of God. We are no longer strangers from one another. We are no longer foreigners; we are all citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven. We are all a part of the household of God.

Who is a stranger to you? Who is someone or a group of people that you have a hostile relationship with? Is it the opposite political party from you? Is it another race? Is it immigrants? Who is the stranger to you? Jesus has come to break down the barrier of hostility between you. Jesus has come to make us no longer strangers with one another.

Each week we gather as Christians to praise our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. And we often focus on how Jesus healed the relationship between us and God. There was a barrier between us and God because of sin. But Jesus has come to do more than just that. Jesus came to heal our relationships with one another. Jesus came to heal our relationships with one another so that we are no longer hostile with one another, so that we are no longer divided, so that that we are no longer foreigners and strangers to one another.

Sadly, I have people in my own extended family who are no longer speaking to one another because of politics. Politics has made them strangers to one another. Maybe you have this in your family, or if not politics, some issue that has caused hostility and division.

Sometimes people in our lives that were once family and friends are now strangers to us because of division, disagreements, and hostility. Sometimes we feel that the barriers we have created among us are just too difficult to overcome.

But we serve a God of the impossible. We serve a God who breaks down barriers. If God could break down the barrier between Jews and Gentiles, surely there is no obstacle, no barrier too difficult for God to break down.

I encourage you this week to pray about the situations in your life where there is division, where there is hurt and pain, where there are obstacles. Pray about this in your own life, in your family, in your workplace, your neighborhood, our community, our church, and yes, even our country and our world. I encourage you to bring this to the Prince of Peace. Our God who breaks down barriers, and I hope we all experience no longer being strangers to one another.

And some homework other than prayer. And this will probably take longer than just this week. Have a conversation with someone who you disagree with. Not a debate, but a conversation. Seek to listen to one another and see if you can find some sort of common ground between one another.

Because if our country is to heal our division and polarization, if our country is to become “a more perfect union,” if we are to break down the barriers of hostility and become no longer foreigners and strangers to one another, then we will probably have to do a lot less arguing, yelling, and debating, and instead do a lot more listening, and asking thoughtful questions.

May we encounter the Prince of Peace. May we become no longer strangers to one another. And may the peace of Christ break down the walls and barriers of hostility among us.

Amen